San Cristobal, Mexico

We have moved up into the mountains to the colonial town of San Cristobal. Being higher we suddenly have the odd experience of having to have blankets on the bed and wear our warm tops at night (sort of like a good Dunedin spring day it is sunny but cool in the shadows daytime and cool at night). But the town is lovely and the region is home to the very cool Zapatista guerillas (who don´t shoot tourists which is good) but stand for Mayan independence and anti-globalisation.

We went on a great tour into the hills to visit the Mayan towns pictured below and may have finally found the right religion for Ciaran. A mixture of Mayan traditional beliefs and Catholicism where worship includes burping after coca-cola to expel evil spirits, using a lot of gunpowder and fireworks to make loud explosions and lighting lots of candles. He was a bit concerned about the regular chicken sacrifices in the church however (no photos allowed). The interior was extraordinary with no pews but pine needles covering the floor, literally hundreds of lit candles, on the floor and tables. There were many justifiably anxious chickens awaiting their fate and others past worrying. Many of the local people were praying, chanting and coke drinking. A wonderful experience.
We had an excellent guide up there definitely one of the highlights of our trip so far. He was part Mayan so able to give us a lot of insights as well as being very passionate about the cause.

Palenque, Mexico

Inside a Mayan temple this time, looking at burial areas. This is the big site for Mexico and again beautifully set in the jungle (including our hotel). At night you go to a restaurant by torchlight and the whole place smells like the green house at the Botanic gardens. Palenque is extensively restored so you can get a good feel for what the temples would have looked like. Hot again though with the lovely feeling of sweat trickling whenever you stop.
Last temples for a while and on to something different!